Why We Became Preppers. From Rural Life to COVID - All Man's Land Podcast | Episode 31

We didn't get into preparedness because we thought the world was ending Tuesday. For both of us, a lot of it started long before we ever called it "prepping." Growing up around the rural Rockies and Great Plains meant being surrounded by people who hunted, fished, worked with their hands, stored food, dealt with brutal weather, fixed things themselves, and understood that sometimes help isn't five minutes away. That upbringing planted the seed. Then adulthood provided plenty of reminders why those skills still matter. Severe weather. Power outages. Supply disruptions. Empty shelves. Economic uncertainty. And then COVID-19, when millions of Americans suddenly discovered just how quickly normal life could be disrupted. In this episode of All Man's Land, we're telling the story of why we got into survival and preparedness—and why our philosophy isn't really about bunkers, gas masks, or waiting for civilization to collapse. It's about competence. Can you feed your family if the grocery store isn't operating normally? Can you keep your house warm when the power goes out? Can you grow food? Can you hunt and fish? Can you purify water? Can you repair things? Can you handle an emergency without immediately becoming dependent on somebody else? And most importantly: can you use those capabilities to help your family, neighbors, and community when something actually goes wrong? Preparedness shouldn't be driven by fear. For us, it's about responsibility, stewardship, self-reliance, and being useful when circumstances become difficult. We're talking about our childhoods, the experiences that shaped us, what COVID changed, where prepping culture gets ridiculous, and the practical level of preparedness we think ordinary families should consider. You don't have to prepare for the apocalypse. Sometimes you just need to be ready for Tuesday going sideways.